6 Reasons Boys Should Sit During Potty Training

Like many Circle of Moms members, Sharon M. feels like she is in a potty training nightmare. She’s decided she’s just not ready for target practice (and constantly cleaning up the bathroom). That’s why her new tactic for potty training is simple: “I can't imagine him standing up at this age," she says. “The pee would be everywhere. I told my husband if he wanted him to pee standing up he can teach him, and he can clean up the mess, but he’s sitting down for me."

Though there is no definitive right or wrong answer to the “should he sit or stand” potty training question, many Circle of Moms members are convinced that toddler and preschool-aged boys should be encouraged to sit while peeing — at least until they have mastered the potty training process. Here, they list six reasons why they are insisting their sons sit whether peeing or pooping.

1. It’s Less of a Mess

Cleaver B. agrees with Sharon M. and the other Circle of Moms members who swear by potty training in sitting mode, mostly because they don’t want to be wiping up messes. "I want my son to sit while he pees for as long as I can,” she says. “Maybe it’s just me but I hate urine on the toilet seat."

It’s not just her, agree moms like Melissa B.: “My son has been potty trained for over a year since he turned two and as far as he is concerned, boys sit to pee. My adventurous, creative, mischievous red-head is relatively clean when going to the potty, and it hasn't once occurred to him to use it as a fire hose. I am in no hurry for him to learn that boys can pee while standing because it will open up doors of mess. Plus we also don't have to worry about if the seat should be up or down. It just stays down. Teach your son to pee while sitting — it's easier and cleaner.”

Some moms, like Michelle M., take the peeing-while- seated method for boys to the extreme. "I taught my son to pee sitting down and standing up, but I also informed him that is he peed on the seat or floor or anywhere that was not the toilet bowl he would be cleaning it up,” she says. “So to this day and he is now 11 he still sits to pee unless there is a urinal.”

2. It's How Mom Does It

When mom is the role model for potty training, the logical solution is to teach your son to sit down, say Circle of Moms members like Dianne D. "I taught my son to pee sitting down, only because that’s the way we girls do it,” she says. “His father did not teach him so he does not know how to pee standing up.”

Lara T. agrees that moms have no choice about the sit-or-stand issue when they are the primary potty training teachers. “Being a SAHM, it was natural for him to copy me and sit,” she says. “Eventually though he asked to stand up and pee like his dad. We gave it a go and taught him to clean up any messes, this was around four. It very quickly became too messy (he's highly distractible), so we told him back to sitting. We've tried again once or twice (he's seven) and he doesn't clean up the messes so no standing allowed.”

3. Standing Can Be Distractive

Many moms agree that another good reason to teach potty training sitting downis that it helps boys be more focused about learning to use the toilet. "When they stand they get distracted by everything from the window to the floor and pee goes everywhere their eyes do,” says Tiffiny.

4. It's Easier When You're Away from Home

Heather K. shares that when her son stands up, it often results in not only a mess, but also in him wetting his pants. That’s why she says that sitting down is especially sensible when she brings her son to a public bathroom and they are away from home.

“My son is four-and-a-half and trying also to stand while he pees,” she says. “But the issue is that he needs to clean up whatever mess he makes if he decides to pee when standing up. So anytime he makes a big mess peeing standing up, he has to personally get some toilet paper or a paper towel and clean it up. The pee goes everywhere when he does this. So when he is out with me, I make him sit down."

5. Some Boys Would Rather Sit

Many moms say they may have chosen to go the standing route, but when their sons showed a preference for sitting, they chose the path of least resistance. Faith H. agrees: "I think its more of his preference than anything.

6. He’s Too Short to Stand

Sometimes sitting is the most logical choice because your son is not tall enough to negotiate a toilet while standing. “It is easier for them to learn sitting down," Michelle M. explains. "Then when they are a little taller then they can start learning to shoot the Cheerios in the potty to stand. Maren T. agrees: “I feel when they are young and too short to properly aim just let them sit. “